


Like a Bird Set Free

by Kasino



Category: The Walking Dead (Telltale Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Blind Violet (Walking Dead: Done Running), Conflicted Minerva (Walking Dead), Episode: s04e04 Take Us Back, F/F, F/M, First Meetings, Hurt/Comfort, Life Debt, Lost Love, Second Chances, Self-Sacrifice, Suicidal Thoughts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-07
Updated: 2020-04-07
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:53:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,304
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23534848
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kasino/pseuds/Kasino
Summary: The song remains the same.Chaos has fallen, as it inevitably does. The S.S. Stewarts Fitzgerald has been decimated by the kids from Ericson's Boarding School for Troubled Youth, and the Delta has been crippled in their war efforts. And thus, on the banks of the river, surrounded by a herd of walkers, the final confrontation between kids and kidnappers comes to a close.After the explosion that destroyed the ship, Violet is left in the darkness, blinded, for all but a blurry vision of what might be in her left eye, and mere metres away, Minerva fights for her life and those of her friends, only she can't tell whether those are the Delta or the Youth. There, in the midst of chaos, their story ends.
Relationships: Clementine/Louis (Walking Dead: Done Running), Minerva/Violet (Walking Dead: Done Running)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 8





	Like a Bird Set Free

**Author's Note:**

> Clearly I hate myself for even writing this. I absolutely adored the final season, and all the characters it brought with it, particularly Violet and Minerva. So, given the lack of attention given to them as a duo, despite the fact that they'd been together until a year before Clementine shows up, I thought I'd try my hand at writing them an ending, even if it hurts. Have fun reading people! I know I did writing this...

This wasn't exactly what Violet meant when she'd said that she'd give her eye for a chicken nugget, and she was willing to bet that she wouldn't even get the nugget. At first, she'd suspected it was simply the murky water she'd been submerged in after having followed Minnie to the boiler room, only to be met by an explosion. Of course, the searing pain in her head was desperatly trying to convince her otherwise, but she refused to listen to it. This was the apocalypse, she needed her sight, she couldn't just lose it. But then, after breaching the water's surface, the horrible truth just had to rear it's ugly head and prove her wrong.

'Ohfuckohfuckohfuck...' Violet kept whispering to herself, praying with whatever faith she'd left behind years ago that she was wrong. She wasn't. Her eyes burned, her body screamed, and she could barely see a damn thing. She was practically blind. And then she was being pulled back by a groaning, shambling corpse. Survival instincts kicked in. She scrambled back, resisting the walker and kicking at its unrelenting head. 'Get the fuck off of me!'

At that moment, Violet could have sworn that someone had yelled her name, but she was a little too preoccupied with the creature seeking to sink its teeth into her leg. Grasping behind her for anything to fight back with, the sound of an arrow whistled past her head, and a soft crunch brought word of the walker's death, its grip instantly loosening around her calf. Not wanting to risk staying anywhere near the water, she turned towards where the projectile had fired from and scrambled in the general direction.

'Oh my god, Violet!' Shit. That voice was unforgettable.

'Clem? Where are you?' She begged, looking side to side, hoping to locate the girl she'd betrayed. Fuck. She didn't deserve that concern she heard in Clem's voice. Not after what she'd done. Violet's voice barely even allowed itself to call out for her. There was this nagging feeling in the back of her mind, that mocked her, telling her that Clementine was going to leave her. Leave her to die as she'd practically done her.

'Louis! Get over here she's hurt!' God, someone else she'd hurt. Someone else whose heart she'd broken the second she made a break to stop Clem from attacking Minnie. Minnie.

'Where's Minnie?' Violet couldn't help herself. She knew that something was wrong with her, she realized that the second she'd confessed to killing Sophie, but the ache in her heart that stemmed from not knowing whether or not she was still alive was growing worse by the second.

'What? I don't know.' Fuck. Why should Clem care? She didn't know Minnie the way she did, she never could have. The Delta made sure of that the second they started taking children for their fucking war.

'We headed towards the boiler room to stop the bomb and I just...' She rushed through the last few minutes - wait, no - it had been seconds, of what had happened, and she couldn't see any way that Minnie could have survived. Christ. She was right against the door to the boiler when it exploded. Oh God. No not again. She couldn't lose her again.

'Woah, slow down, you're-' Not right now.

'Where is she?!' Violet screamed, finally catching a glimpse of her saviour. The one she wasn't worthy of.

'Louis!' Clementine called once more across the battlefield, and Violet heard his frantic steps skittering towards her before they grinded to a stop. Shit, her face must be worse than she thought.

'Okay Vi, we've got you, come on.' Almost no-one meritted someone like Louis these days. In a world where most everyone had become a monster, believing that any soul could be so capable of caring so much was almost impossible. Luckily, Louis seemed to like telling the impossible to shove it where the sun don't shine.

Violet reached out, the noises of flames, gunfire, and the growls of the undead seeming ever more present to her, as her hand found Louis's and her shaking legs managed to prop themselves up. The fear of this world she'd known since she was eleven laid siege, rendering her a terrified child, as she had been the day a TA sunk his teeth into her history teacher's neck. Only her friend's hand in hers, and the sound of the voice of a girl she couldn't believe had ever been a stranger to her, served to ground her.

'Oh shit.' The blurry apparition of Clementine curled her hands into balls before tenderly extending a hand that made Violet's heart flutter. Damn her. 'Can you... Can you see?'

'I don't...' She could barely call the misty figures and environment around her vision. 'Just don't let go of me, okay?'

'Clem!' Oh, AJ. He was safe, thank God. Too many kids had died, no matter the maturity they feigned to have. She could barely make out his outline, but Clem swivling around on a dime implied the approach of something. Walkers or Delta.

'Shit. We can't stay here.' Louis tightened his grip on her hand, and then the running had started. How many times had they been running in the past few weeks? Violet swore it was becoming more and more common with every passing day. As she put every ounce of trust she had in Clem, Louis, and AJ, there was a familiar clamouring of voices in which she was able to make out Aasim counting off walker head, Omar whining about his injured leg, and-

'Shit! Dammit!'

At the curses of her voice, an image flashed into Violet's mind, clear as the day, of her beautiful smile, her smart yet stylish haircut, her alluring piercings, her warm jacket that had always smelled of home, and the silver rings that decorated her slender fingers. Ones that had danced across her skin during the peace of better days, that had made her feel so safe, and loved. A voice that had promised her the world they'd lost years prior, and of course, Violet had so desperatly wanted to believe her, but the lies they were telling each other could never hope to convince a priest of God's existence, and they'd laughed at the truth so often that all that had left itself open to them was a purgatory of uncertainty in which the only thing they'd been left with was their own love, evolving and festering into something beautiful, something that took on a will of its own to pull Violet's hand from her best friend's as she scanned the scorched earth for a woman who was no longer who she remembered. Not that it could ever matter to her. Not when all she could hear, in the middle of all the bloodshed, was that damn song.

_Never mind the darkness_

'Vi! What are you doing?' Louis snatched her back, clearly having seen the same woman she had. 'That is not Minnie anymore Vi! Leave her!'

'Damn it Lou! I'm not doing it for her!' That gave pause to him dragging her back towards the group, who, according to the lack of voices telling her she was fucking crazy, hadn't noticed her fix her limited views on a poisoned horizon. 'She was furious on our way down to the boiler room. She wanted revenge, justice. If she sees any of you, you're all dead! I can't let that happen. I already almost screwed you over once before I can't do it again!'

'Violet! We've already fucking forgiven it. They screwed with your head, we don't care!'

'Well I do! I can't let her see you. She won't hurt me Louis.' The two of them doubted every word spilling from Violet's mouth, but they were only one more severe scene away from drawing every walker and Delta on the beach to them. Clementine's form, discernable from this distance only thanks to her worn hat, motioned to a blazing bright area at the forest's edge, from where Violet could make out a series of neighs and whinnies. Escape.

'Vi you can hardly see five feet in front of you. How do you intend on getting off of this beach without us?'

'I've got Minnie for that. I can help you guys, and she can help me get out.'

Louis kept turning side to side, constantly swearing under his breath, probably justly wanting to deck Violet in the face and get out of Dodge. Although years of friendship were the foundation for his knowing that she'd more likely break his nose in that fight, even if mostly blind. Gunshots sounded from Minnie's direction, and Louis snapped his head towards her, swearing a substantial amount louder. His fists clenched, as he looked at the Troubled Youth preparing to make a break for Ruby and Willy, standing ready with a horse and carriage.

'We don't have time for this Lou! You have to go! You have to take care of Clem.'

_Never mind the storm_

'What?'

She'd let on too much, of course she had. Son of a bitch. Louis's face wore an expression of shock that almost managed to hide the fact that he knew. Never had he met a secret of Violet's that he couldn't uncover.

'Oh come on Lou. We both fell hard for that girl the second she barged back into Ericson's to help that kid, and to Hell with us if we'd stand in her way.'

'Not fucking now Vi. Please, we can settle this over a game of poker, we play for Clem's love and affection.' Cracking jokes even in the worst of times. That was rich-boy Louis. Loveable bastard.

'Save the jokes Lou. Just... You've always been better at this flirting thing than I was. Was there ever any doubt she'd fall for you?'

There they stood, in silence and in war. Loving the same girl. Fighting the same battle. Finding different silver linings in the horrors they've experienced. At least Violet wouldn't be relied on for patrol anymore, and she'd finally stop her morbid eyeball jokes. Who saw which silver lining was up for debate. Violet kept the best gaze she could burning into Louis's heart, and Louis switched through the possibilites of each terrifying path that lay before them. At last, one last joke was quipped and a temporary goodbye risked tears for the both of them. Who said which was up for debate.

'We both know Clem doesn't need anyone looking out for her.'

'I'll see you at home.'

Louis broke off for the Youth, smashing a rock into a walker's skull on the way past, and Violet set her sights on the fiery redhead of her worst dreams and of her best nightmares. One foot in front of another, she made her way to the water, where blood rained and growls of the dead left the birds and the lake too unnerved to utter a sound. Without skipping a beat, Violet began to sprint, resigned to ignore the shapes reaching out to her with malicious intent, as the woman she held so dear was captivated by her foolish bravery.

'Violet!' Her cries invigorated her as she cut through the dead in order to reach her light at the end of the tunnel. 'What the fuck happened to you?'

There was no time for tearful reunions, as Violet's plan was fulfilled and Minerva dragged her past the pier, where a dead Delta lay in a makeshift box fort with an arrow between her eyes. Minnie removed the corpse and hoisted Violet into the defensible circle, handing her a loaded gun while the near-blind girl explained her injuries. Minnie was lucky to have any time to apologize, as a walker gripped her arm and brought its teeth down, only for its head to be removed by Violet's pistol before puncturing Minnie's jacket. Blood covered the Delta warrior, and a split-second desicion made Violet hope again. She heard a familiar voice - some Delta that had imprisoned her - call her name in a rage not befitting the living, and she didn't doubt she'd be gunned down. But the shot that rang out did not find its mark in her chest, for the barrel of Minnie's gun smoked.

'Damn.' Minnie clicked her tongue in a frustrated manner Violet had only ever known her to be able to pull off, and made a quick note of their surroundings before gripping Violet by the shoulders.

_Never mind the blood red moon_

'Vi, I... I'm sorry. I'm sorry for what the Delta did to you. If I... If I knew that your friends could really pull all this shit off I would have...' Whatever she had meant to say, the words were lost as she stared into Violet's eyes, and a fire that had, long ago, burned brighter than the stars they'd loved to watch rekindled.

The world around them evaporated as Minerva brought them together, crashing her lips into Violet's as the memories of Ericson's and the teaching of the Delta fought for control, sending her mind into an overdrive that could only ever be satiated by the touch of her star-lit lover. Different voices, among them Louis and Lilly, quieted as they separated, Minerva's eyes closed in a peace she had missed for over a year.

'I have wanted to come back so many times, if only to do that one more time.'

Words flew unspoken between the two, as easily as they once had. After all, Minnie had to find a way to be so in love with someone so distant from everyone else without falling away from the rest of her friends.

'I'm just so fucking sorry Vi.'

'I know. Me too.'

Minerva reared her head, her eyes glossed over in a haze of confusion. Violet had nothing to apologize for. She never would.

'What the Hell for?'

'For making life so hard on you back at Ericson's.' Violet's laugh was stifled by a small cry that bore so much weight on her shoulders that she thought she might collapse from the pressure. 'Fuck, you were so loved, and, God, did you fucking love them all back. Then I came along with baggage and distance, and you changed for me so fucking much that Louis was convinced I'd murdered you out in the woods and replaced you with someone with a much cooler haircut.'

Minerva choked out her own laugh, laying their foreheads together as her two lives collided. The sins of the sister guilty of sororicide coursing through her mind. She needed to get out. She needed to find shelter.

_The night will be over soon_

'Hey. Hey Vi. Let's get out of here okay? We'll find somewhere to hole up. It can... It can be just like it was before. We can be just like we were before.' Minnie whispered and grinned at her girlfriend. She wiped the tears from the burnt skin around Violet's eyes with her sleeve and laughed in tandem with her. She looked up to the sky, where the thousands of stars they used to name twinkled down at them. 'I can tell you what stars are the brightest and which ones dictate a future we'll probably ignore. How's that sound? We can get Tenn out of Ericson's and bring him with us. We'll find somewhere with soundproof walls so that we can have some fun while he gets some sleep, yeah?'

Violet laughed at the thought, and rolled her eyes in a gesture so necessary to her that not even the loss of eyesight would stop her from doing it.

Such familiarity brought voices back to Minerva louder than ever. Tenn, Louis, Marlon, Brody, Ruby, Aasim, Omar, Mitch, Willy... Sophie. They were all laughing with her, not that she could discern from when the laughter originated, because, God, there used to be so much of it. Laughter and smiles and singing and games and kissing and living and loving. All of the good in her life she was forced to leave behind.

'How does that sound?' She whispered, a hand on Violet's chest, just feeling her heartbeat as the chaos around them raged on, ignorant of the loving couple.

'It sounds amazing. I've dreamt about that you know? Just me and you, on the road together, flipping off the world.' This time Violet initiated the kiss, but her smile fell at the separation. 'Just... Why the fuck did you have to kill Sophie?'

The loudest and heaviest gunshot either of them had ever heard left the peace they'd found in tatters, as a bullet tore through Minerva's stomach. Not nearly fatal enough. It wasn't at all where Violet had meant to fire, but in a way, she was glad, even as she felt the knife slip through her ribcage. She hadn't had to kill the girl she loved. But one last time, the Delta won out, and Minnie had. She didn't register the movements of her arm once the bullet had wounded her. She'd simply acted on muscle memory, and the voices of the Troubled Youth were drowned out by the Delta. Until she heard one again, much more present and broken.

'VIOLET! NO!' It was Louis. Snapped out of her trance by the voice, once so beautiful and rehearsed, now hideous and raw, her head lolled around, until she glimpsed Louis staring at her helplessly. Her old friend. Then that girl was at his side, screaming Violet's name beside him. Clementine. Why were they... Calling for Violet?

Minerva stared on in consideration, until a cough painted her jacket with blood. God, she reeked of it. Her view fell back to the scene around her, and the mind games of the Delta had, at long last, come to a head. Violet lay against a wooden crate, blackened by putrid walker blood, her own seeping from a cut in her abdomen, her blood dripping from the knife in Minerva's hand. Her howl of fear at the realization of what she'd done was unrecognizable as any word or significant sound in any language.

'VIOLET!' She dropped to her knees and pressed her hands against the wound, making no effect as the blood wept through her fingers. 'Oh God Vi nononononononono I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to Violet I didn't mean to. Please hold on.'

'It's okay.' Violet forced herself to smile as she cupped Minerva's face in her hand, still gazing up at her with love, unfazed by her fate. 'It's okay Minnie. I'm sorry it came to this. But I'll be free now, like we always talked about.'

'Oh fuck your stupid fucking birds Vi! I need you here! Stay with me please!' Minerva's screams echoed across the battlefield, numbers almost spent on the Delta's side, and only getting more numerous for the walkers, as Clementine, with tears flowing from her eyes, pulled Louis away, back towards the rest of the Youths. 'Violet? Please... I love you. I love you.'

Her sobs trailed off as any remnant of Violet slowly left her eyes, and with a pain greater than anything she'd every felt, she succeded in uttering a few more words.

'I love you too. Just let me go. Please... Tell me what I'll be.'

Minerva heard her plea, and steeled herself for just one more lie.

'Birds get to just fly away. Up, up, up and away, and they never have to come back down. You're going to be free Vi, you're being set free.'

If Violet's faith had ever really meant anything to her, a riddle only she could ever have found the solution for, she'd be going home, and she'd be sitting with her grandma again, only this time she'd be happy, but they'd sure as Hell still be watching those stupid cartoons.

_The night will be over soon_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yep, I hate myself. Look forward to seeing where Minerva's story ends in chapter 2. I can tell you that, just like this, it isn't going to be pretty.


End file.
